What does sustainable procurement mean?
Sustainable procurement describes the strategic alignment of public purchasing with environmental, social and economic aspects in mind. Contracting authorities look not only at the price but also at factors such as environmental impact, fair working conditions, resource efficiency and life-cycle costs. The idea behind this is that the public sector in Germany, with an annual procurement volume of several hundred billion euros, has considerable market power and can use it to promote sustainable development.
Sustainable procurement is put into practice at different stages of the procurement procedure. Already during the needs analysis, the authority can check whether a purchase is necessary at all or whether alternatives such as repair, rental or shared use are an option. In the specification, environmental criteria such as energy efficiency, recyclability or the use of low-pollutant materials can be defined as technical requirements. Sustainability aspects can feed into the award criteria as evaluation criteria, and the contract performance conditions can require social standards such as compliance with the ILO core labor standards.
Labels and certifications such as the Blauer Engel (Blue Angel), the EU Ecolabel or Fairtrade labels can serve as proof that sustainability criteria are met. Contracting authorities must always accept equivalent proof so that competition is not restricted unlawfully.
Relevance for bidders
Sustainable procurement is becoming more and more important for bidders, because more and more contracting authorities build sustainability criteria into their procurement procedures. Companies that invest early in sustainable products, processes and certifications gain a competitive advantage. It is a good idea to obtain relevant certifications, such as environmental management systems under ISO 14001 or energy management systems under ISO 50001, and to use them actively in bids.
Bidders should analyze the specific sustainability requirements of each tender closely and address them directly in their bid. Simply claiming to act sustainably is not enough. Instead, you have to provide concrete proof and evidence.
Legal framework
The legal basis for sustainable procurement is Section 97(3) GWB (German Act against Restraints of Competition), which expressly allows social and environmental aspects to be taken into account. Sections 58 and 59 VgV (Public Procurement Ordinance) govern the option of using environmental and social criteria as award criteria. Section 61 VgV allows special contract performance conditions to be set. The Competence Center for Sustainable Procurement (KNB) at the Procurement Office of the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) supports awarding offices with implementation.